Hyōgo Prefecture (兵庫県,Hyōgo-ken) is aprefecture ofJapan located in theKansai region ofHonshu.[3] Hyōgo Prefecture has a population of 5,469,762 (as of 1 June 2019[update]) and a geographic area of 8,400 square kilometres (3,200 square miles). Hyōgo Prefecture bordersKyoto Prefecture to the east,Osaka Prefecture to the southeast, andOkayama andTottori prefectures to the west.
Map of Hyogo Prefecture with formerprovincial boundaries and current prefectural offices. 1.□Kobe city (divided betweenHarima andSettsu) 2.■Settsu (Hanshin South office) 3.■Settsu (Hanshin North office) 4.■Harima East office 5.■Harima North office 6.■Harima Central office 7.■Harima West office 9.■Tanba office 8.■Tajima office 10.■Awaji office Areas beyond Harima West belonged toMimasaka (north) andBizen (south)
Hyōgo has coastlines on two seas: to the north, theSea of Japan, to the south, theSeto Inland Sea. OnAwaji Island, Hyōgo borders thePacific Ocean coastline in theKii Channel. The northern portion is sparsely populated, except for the city ofToyooka, The central highlands are only populated by tiny villages. Most of Hyōgo's population lives on the southern coast, which is part of theOsaka-Kobe-Kyoto metropolitan area. Awaji is an island that separates the Inland Sea andOsaka Bay, lying between Honshu andShikoku.
Summertime weather throughout Hyōgo is hot and humid. As for winter conditions, the north of Hyōgo tends to receive abundant snow, whilst the south receives only the occasional flurry.
The city ofAkō and the only town inAkō District (Kamigōri), were scheduled to merge and the city would still retain the nameAkō.Akō District would be defunct if the merger was successful.[8] However, the merger has not taken place.
As in all prefectures nationwide, agriculture, forestry, and fisheries play a big role in the economy of Hyogo Prefecture.[9]Hyōgo Prefecture also has an IT industry, many heavy industries, metal and medical,Kobe Port being one of the largest ports in Japan. Kobe Port also hosts one of the world's fastest supercomputers,[10] and Hyogo Prefecture passed laws to keep Kobe Port free of nuclear weapons (anuclear-free zone) since the year 1975.
Hyōgo is a part of theHanshin Industrial Region. There are two research institutes ofRiken, natural sciences research institute in Japan, in Kobe and Harima. "SPring-8", a synchrotron radiation facility, is in Harima.
There are 163 public and 52 private high schools within Hyogo prefecture. Of the public high schools, some are administered by the Hyogo prefectural government, whilst the others are administered by local municipalities.
Arima Onsen in the south of the province in Kita-ku, Kobe is one of theThree Ancient Springs in Japan. The north of Hyogo Prefecture has sightseeing spots such as Kinosaki Onsen,Izushi, andYumura Onsen.Takeda Castle inAsago is often referred to locally as the "Machu Picchu of Japan". The matsuba crab andTajima beef are both national delicacies.[11]
Hyogo entered asister state relationship withWashington state in the United States on October 22, 1963, the first such arrangement between Japan and the United States.[12][13]
In 1981, a sister state agreement was drawn up between Hyogo and the state ofWestern Australia inAustralia.[14] To commemorate the 10th anniversary of this agreement in 1992, the Hyogo Prefectural Government Cultural Centre was established inPerth.[15]
^The Hyōgo Prefectural Government has expressed the view that the "Prefectural song does not exist" and denied the fact that currently, this song has been enacted in 1947.
